A Venture Capital Trust (VCT) is an investment company broadly similar to an investment trust. It will be quoted on a regulated market and will have to invest at least 70% of its assets in companies that would qualify under the EIS, and must distribute most of its income by way of dividend. It must be able to demonstrate a spread of investments: none can account for more than 15% of the value of its portfolio. There are other conditions for VCTs.

State pension deferral is the right to defer entitlement to the state pension. In return for deferring a lump sum accrues with interest added to the deferred entitlement at a rate normally of 2% over bank base rate. Therefore the deferral claim cannot accurately be evaluated in advance.

Stakeholder pension schemes are low-cost pensions meant for people without existing private pension arrangements. They were originally targeted at people who earn more than £10,000 a year and who cannot join an occupational pension scheme. They have, however, turned out to have much broader appeal.

The government has changed the age rules for qualification for the state pension. Currently the state pension age is between 60 and 65 for women and 65 for men. The changes mean that retirement age for women will be equalised with that for men at 65 by 2020 and both will increase to 65 to 68 from 2022 and 2046.

Lentells Ltd Chartered Certified Accountants

Registered as auditors and regulated for a range of investment business activities in the United Kingdom by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. Licensed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales to carry out the reserved legal activity of non-contentious probate in England and Wales.

This company is not authorised under the Financial Services & Markets Act 2000 but we are able in certain circumstances to offer a limited range of investment services to clients because we are regulated by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. We can provide these investment services if they are an incidental part of the professional service we have been engaged to provide.